Week sixteen of the Obama second-term presidency found the administration playing 'whack-a-mole' and the term 'scandal' being thrown around even when it came to the president asking Marines to hold umbrellas for himself and a visiting head-of-state during a rainy-day press conference.

Critics of the administration, many...

This week on the national scene -- the student loan crisis, and President Obama meets with two female heads-of-state. In the meantime, Emily's List launches a campaign for a woman president in America.

Graduating With a Mountain-Load of Debt

The president gave the first of his three 2013 commencement addresses...

Back and forth. Side to side. Push and pull. Around and around. The mother-child dance can last forever. I'm starting to see it in my own daughter. "Don't touch me, mom!" when I attempt one of the impromptu hugs we've shared for her 14 years. "Wait, mom, don't leave!" she...

Washington Watch is a weekly look at President Obama's second term -- and related news on the national scene. For prior weeks of Washington Watch visit: Our-Gov.com

This past week saw the release of data sure to affect our daily lives and our voting for years to come!...

2009 was about him. 2013 is about us.

As I leave Southern California in route to the inauguration, I cannot help but think of the throng of masses who gathered to witness the historical 2009 inauguration. People from all walks of life... all ages, all ethnicities, joined to celebrate...

"Friday changed everything. It must change everything." -- Joe Scarborough, commenting after Newtown massacre

A bittersweet holiday awaits us. As we gather with family and friends, or spend time in contemplative solitude, many in Southern California will no doubt reflect upon the senseless tragedy that befell Newtown, Conn. on December...

As I make my way to Charlotte I can't help but think of the trek I made four years ago to Denver as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. As an Obama delegate, I was part of a diverse group of Californians. We went to Denver after a bruising...

The Hustle was a line dance popular in Los Angeles (and across the country) in the mid-seventies. Music producer, Van McCoy came up with a song to go with the dance, and "The Hustle" made it to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of...

"Selfish" is a dirty word for most of us. The dictionary defines selfish as: "devoted to or caring only for oneself; concerned primarily with one's own interests, benefits, welfare, etc., regardless of others."

The women I know wouldn't fit this definition and most aim to stay far away from...

The road to U.C. Berkeley was not an easy one for Moreno Valley's Jamal Samuel. It included 4:15 am treks along the barren landscape of the former March Air Force base to catch the first of two buses that would get him to Riverside's North High School.

Unbeknownst to...

One evening a few years ago, I received a frantic phone call from a friend. She was sitting in her driveway guarding her son's video gaming systems. They were on the front curb next to the family's trash cans.

"Please come get them!" she begged me. It seemed her...

Sometimes I wish I could talk to the parents I had as a kid and ask them to explain their rationale for some of their parenting decisions back then. Dad is gone. Mom is still around, but today she's just a sweet little old lady who dotes on her grandchildren....

Perplexing verdicts, such as from the Casey Anthony case, are a frequent occurrence for Americans, Angelenos included. We accept that they are just part of our judicial system and hope that one day justice will be served. Black Los Angeles has a long history of surprising verdicts. Some led to...

There is a dearth of historical stories on black life in Southern California. Those that do exist focus on entertainment, crime, or sports. But looking back, one might wonder -- what was every day life like for black Angelenos thirty or forty years ago? Where, and how, did they live,...

So you won't be spending seven days and six nights in a tropical paradise this summer? Your kids probably won't see Mickey and you'll be lucky if you get ten miles out of town. Maybe you have lost your job and are spending all of your free time looking for...

The smoke was thick at the Forum during a recent Prince concert. At least in the section I was sitting in with my twelve-year-old, who kept asking, "Mom, what is that strange smell?"

"Shut up and enjoy the concert!" I wanted to say, but instead I would fan her...

Like many adult children, I sometimes look back at my mother and lament over all of her child-rearing 'mistakes.' (Not as much now that I have children of my own.) Nevertheless, I must give her credit for making my brother and I respect her -- particularly her time.

She is...

Every Easter at church I see small girls dressed in brightly colored dresses with matching Easter bonnets. Sometimes, their moms also have on an equally colorful dress and hat. Not as much as in the past though. Few of us 'dress up' to go to church anymore, unless we are...

"I'm the only one left. They're all gone."

An elderly relative is telling me of the recent death of her 91-year-old sister. I listen as she fondly describes growing up with four siblings and the emptiness she feels now that they aren't around anymore.

I am confused because...

"The wheel of history turned at a blinding pace."
Obama speaking on the fall of Mubarak, February 11, 2011

I know my children get tired of hearing me say this: "You are living through historic times!"

I'm sure other generations have felt this way. I've heard my...